Alexander Popov, full name Aleksandr Vladimirovich Popov, is a Russian former competitive swimmer born November 16, 1971, in Lesnoy, Sverdlovsk Oblast, widely considered the greatest sprint freestyle swimmer in history. He won gold in both the 50 meter and 100 meter freestyle at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and repeated the double at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, becoming the only man to defend both sprint titles, and finished his Olympic career with four gold and five silver medals. He held the 100 meter freestyle world record for six years and the 50 meter freestyle world record for about eight years, and at age 31 won both sprint events again at the 2003 World Championships in Barcelona.
Facts
Career HighlightWon Olympic gold in the 50 metre and 100 metre freestyle at both the 1992 and 1996 Games, the only man to defend both sprint titles. 1 Classification
Competition Category FAQs
What happened to Alexander Popov after the 1996 Olympics?
He was stabbed a month after Atlanta but recovered and won both sprint titles again at the 1997 European Championships.
One month after the Atlanta Olympics, Popov was stabbed in the abdomen with a knife during a dispute with three Moscow street vendors. The knife sliced his artery, grazed one of his kidneys and damaged the pleura, the membrane around the lungs. He had emergency surgery and spent three months in rehabilitation, and he still returned to successfully defend his 50 meter and 100 meter freestyle titles at the 1997 European Championships in Seville, Spain.
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Competed In
Source Wikipedia, Alexander Popov
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Source Aleksandr Popov (swimmer) (Wikipedia)
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Source Wikipedia, Alexander PopovLead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia articletier 2Quote, Lead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia article
Aleksandr Vladimirovich Popov (Russian: Алекса́ндр Влади́мирович Попо́в, born 16 November 1971), better known as Alexander Popov, is a Russian former swimmer.
Sources
1. Wikipedia, Alexander Popov
WikipediaLead section, Olympic record
the only male in Olympic games history to defend both titles
- Lead section
Competed In: 1996 Summer Olympics, Article text (competition)
Popov won the men's 50 m and 100 m freestyle in the Barcelona Olympics in 1992, and repeated his victories in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, becoming the first man to do so since Johnny Weissmuller.
View the Source Aleksandr Popov (swimmer) (Wikipedia)
Plays: Swimming, lead paragraph, playsQuote, Plays: Swimming, lead paragraph, plays
Aleksandr Vladimirovich Popov (Russian: Алекса́ндр Влади́мирович Попо́в, born 16 November 1971), better known as Alexander Popov, is a Russian former swimmer.
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